Mumbai civic body ropes in firm to improve rank in cleanliness survey

Of the 434 cities that participated in the 2017 survey, Mumbai ranked 29th, dropping 19 ranks below its position in the 2016 survey.

After Mumbai fared much lower than Navi Mumbai and Pune in terms of mobile application usage and citizen feedback in last year’s Swachh Survekshan survey, the civic body has appointed an independent agency to improve its ranking.

Municipalities are rated based on their promptness to act on complaints received via the Swachhata app. (File pic for representation)

The agency, ‘Feet on the Street’, will approach citizens at railway stations, hospitals and markets, and ask them to download the mobile app Swachhata-MoHUA and record their feedback.

Of the 2,000 points that were up for grabs last year, 150 points were awarded on the basis of mobile app usage. Municipalities were also rated based on their promptness to act on complaints received via the Swachhata app.

Vijay Singhal, additional municipal commissioner, in charge of solid waste management, said “Our aim is to increase citizen participation and receive constructive criticism so that we can improve.”

According to the app data, Mumbai had 9,252 users compared to 18,246 in Navi Mumbai and 11,674 in Pune.

Of the 434 cities that participated in the 2017 survey, Mumbai ranked 29th, dropping 19 ranks below its position in the 2016 survey.